Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

In Portrait, Stephen's religious environment at Clongowes did partly shape who he was. At the beginning of the book, he still led a rather uneventful life. He was not a rebel kid, and stayed as true to the rules as he could. He did not smoke, chew, drink, engage in women ect. The only departure was he love for art. While this was not looked down upon at the school, Stephen took a stand to his favorite poet even though called a heretic. However, this strict environment did not keep a hold on Stephen long once he realized the lack of enjoyment there would be in a future of the priesthood. Then, the environment around him began to shape how he saw the world and his ideals. The nature which inspired him to create art, also detracted from his religious learning. Suddenly his love of beauty was exposed as soon as he rejected the religious restrictions. The environment at Clongowes shaped him to later reject the ideology they taught him there. This is because in learning he desired more. And the proctor taught how to see beauty which inspired Stephen to seek more. But upon seeking, he realized that beauty is not in any book that is written but in his own mind. This cause him to reject the religious aspects of his life in order to seek beauty.